With cinches tight and the crisp mountain air giving the horses a little extra spring in their step, my good friend, J.L. and I set out to enjoy a beautiful fall day on the Virginia Creeper Trail. This trail begins in Abingdon, Virginia and ends 34 miles away at White Top Station on the VA/NC border.
We started out the ride at the Abingdon trail head and after a quick look at the sign telling about the history of the trail, we were off and crossing the first of the 47 trestles that lay along the way. Right away the fall colors were everywhere and we saw a huge ancient oak that is estimated to be over 150 years old. Not only is the landscape spectacular on this trail, the footing is soft and smooth and nearly level, so the gaiting is as well. Severel times, I let my singlefooting gelding, Champagne Jam, unwind and the farther the faster we would go. We passed through private farmland that you could imagine looked the same as it did 100 years ago and crossed the beautiful Holston River in route to our destination of Alvarado, 9 miles away.
Once in Alvarado we tethered our horses to the hitching posts and went into a quaint little general store for hot food, good conversation and to rest ourselves and reflect on the great ride we had had. I remember setting there and thinking about how I knew I was blessed with at least 3 things that day, good friends, good horses and good riding. I also knew that I was not going to disappointed that I had to back track to the trailer, because on this trail, to ride it again is a blessing in itself.
The Virginia Creeper Trail is open to bicyclists, hikers and horseback riders. It offers bathroom facilities, refreshments stands, a wine tasting shop and many other shops along the way. Live music can also be enjoyed from time to time. For more info visit http://www.vacreepertrail.org/
